This Adorable Norfolk Wedding Sings with Local Blooms
And did we mention the stationery? Perfection.
August 28, 2020
Private Residence
Norfolk, Massachusetts
Photo by Lynne Reznick Photography
THE STORY
Lauren Kelley was about to turn in for the night when she spotted something unusual: a greeting card, placed upon her bed. “I was so confused,” she recalls, with a laugh. With her boyfriend Michael Guyder looking on from a nearby recliner, Lauren nervously opened the card. Inside? “The most beautiful engagement ring I’d ever seen,” she says. As Lauren’s eyes filled with happy tears, Michael walked over to her, getting down on one knee before slipping the ring on her finger. “I was in total shock,” Lauren adds.
For their August 2020 wedding nearly two years later, the couple originally planned a reception at the Fairmont Le Château Frontenac in Quebec City: an artsy, romantic locale with an “Old World feel” the couple loves. But as the date approached—and the COVID-19 outbreak continued to worsen—Lauren and Michael knew their Canadian celebration would need to wait. Postponing the affair to summer 2021, the couple decided to honor their original wedding date with a small backyard wedding at their house in Norfolk instead. “We really wanted to keep the day for ourselves,” Lauren explains.
So, with the help of family and friends, the longtime pair said “I do” at home in the company of just 18 guests. Taking cues from the larger wedding they plan to host later this year, Lauren and Michael treated loved ones to a festive cocktail hour—complete with lawn games and limoncello-spiked margaritas—and a seated dinner in the yard. “I’m really happy now that we did everything the way we did,” Lauren says. “I think it lets you appreciate what really matters: the people right there in front of you.”
THE DETAILS
Photo by Lynne Reznick Photography
Lauren put together this DIY “Welcome” display using a granite-topped Singer table the couple inherited from the home’s previous owners.
Photo by Lynne Reznick Photography
Choosing to save her ornate, long-trained wedding gown for the couple’s celebration in Quebec City, the bride donned a shorter, more casual dress from Lulus for the occasion. “It [offered] more mobility,” she says.
Photo by Lynne Reznick Photography
Michael’s son Liam, who helped pick out Lauren’s engagement ring, served as the groom’s best man.
Photo by Lynne Reznick Photography
Franklin-based Fiori called on locally grown blooms such as dahlias and amaranths to craft everything from the bride’s free-flowing bouquet to the gorgeous arrangement adorning the ceremony arbor. “I just loved all of the bright colors,” Lauren says.
Photo by Lynne Reznick Photography
Guests enjoyed a champagne toast after the ceremony, officiated by a local justice of the peace.
Photo by Lynne Reznick Photography
Served atop a long table dressed up with candles and florals, dinner included such dishes as swordfish steaks (for Lauren, a pescatarian) and filets with asparagus. On the appetizer menu? Mini lobster rolls and grilled peaches with prosciutto.
Photo by Lynne Reznick Photography
Westwood-based Dessert Works dreamed up Lauren and Michael’s decadent two-tier cake, complete with espresso mousse.
Photo by Lynne Reznick Photography
Owners of Canton-based printing company J.L. McIntosh, the bride’s parents teamed up with stationery designer Wouldn’t It Be Lovely on the couple’s elegant invitation suite, inspired by the pair’s original venue.
THE FILE
Bride’s Dress Lulus
Cake Dessert Works
Caterer Chef McFall
Flowers Fiori
Hair Steller Salon & Apothecary
Stationery Designer Wouldn’t It be Lovely
Stationery Printer J.L. McIntosh
Rings David Yurman
Photographer Lynne Reznick Photography
Getting married? Start and end your wedding planning journey with Boston Weddings' guide to the best wedding vendors in the city.
